Tuesday, 19 February 2013

10 Ways To Motivate Yourself When You Are Feeling Down- By Joel Simms (Dr.
Mo) ***

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Sometimes you feel down...that's normal. It comes
with the territory called "being alive".

Life is like a
wave; and just like the wave, it has both troughs and crests. There has never
been, and there will never be a wave that does not have a top and bottom, an up
and a down.

Sometimes, you may feel so low that you think that
"being up" or "feeling up" again is impossible. If you do, you are not
alone...we've all been there...

Over the years, I've learned a number of ways to
power my way up and out of the place called "down". I've learned to create and
regain Momentum and to motivate myself.

Here are 10 ways to pick yourself up and get
yourself going:

1. Remember that Down Is
Temporary.Remember that every coin has two sides and just because
you're experiencing the down side, that does not mean there isn't an upside too.
When your Momentum and motivation are low, decide to invest energy and you will
change your situation. Go out for a walk when you say you can't. Make a call
when you say you are too tired...you'll soon discover that your Mo and go will
return.

2. Take One Small Step.Any
change can begin with one small step. Often, we keep ourselves stuck in a rut by
thinking that in order to feel better, we have to accomplish something huge.
Take a small step and repeat with small increments and increases. The benefits
will grow and so will your Momentum.

If you're low and want to be more fit, start off by
doing a couple of minutes of exercise that day. Repeat this daily for a week.
Then, increase it by five minutes a day each week for a month. Soon, you will be
doing over 20 minutes of exercise a day. You will feel better, change "down" to
"up" and build your Momentum.

3. Focus on a Single
Goal.Sometimes when I feel low, it's because I've taken on too much
and have not been able to keep up with my many projects. The result is that I
feel overwhelmed and tired. It's as if I've broken the camel's back by trying to
carry too many loads. It's an all-too-common problem...

Here's a powerful solution: Choose a single project
or goal to focus on. Do that one and do it well. You will have time and energy
to move on to others when you regain your accomplishment energy and
motivation.

4. Ask for Help.When you are
feeling low, reach out. We are like batteries...sometimes we can give a charge
to ourselves and others, sometimes we need a charge. Get the help of friends and
family. Get it from your inner circle or seek it online. Write me...ask me for
support.

5. Practice Momentum
Thinking.When you are feeling down, you are "thinking down" and it
is your Thinking that's the real cause of your feeling. To improve your
situation, begin to track your thoughts. Listen to what you are saying to
yourself. It's your negative thoughts that are stopping you and keeping you
stuck.

6. Remind yourself Daily.Put
reminders that are motivational in front of you daily. Subscribe to services
like the AmMo morning email to keep your goal and other motivational tools in
front of you every day. Send reminders to yourself and post short notes in big
bold letters; post pictures of what you will look like or feel like when you
reach your goal in all the places that you look at regularly... your mirror,
your desk, the refrigerator, your steering wheel. If "Out of Sight is Out of
Mind", then keep your goals "Within Sight, Within Mind".

7. Broadcast your Goal.Let
many people know about your goal in general and let family, friends and
colleagues know about it specifically. By doing this, you are committing
yourself to moving from a rut into action, from being stuck to making an
improvement. Write a commitment contract, give copies to people you want to
support you and give them regular updates on your progress.

8. Practice Proportional
Thinking.Any time I feel low, I use a skill I taught myself many
years ago to cut my "low" down to size. Here's how I did it:

I realized by studying my thinking that when I was
feeling crumby, I had the habit of making my problems bigger than they actually
were and of telling myself that I was less capable of improving the situation
than I actually am. I also realized that this is a very common problem for many
people.

To reverse the situation, I start by reminding
myself that I'm practicing this unhealthy habit. Then, I listen for my
inaccurate thoughts. Next, I replace them with accurate ones. For example, I
change "I will never be able to get out of this hole" to "I need to approach
this problem one small step at a time."

9. Breathe, Sleep on It and Shower in the
Morning.I have a method to break out of a funk that always works.
It goes like this...

When I feel particularly down or overwhelmed, I
practice diaphragmatic belly breathing and as I relax and calm myself, I say:
"I'm going to sleep on this tonight. When I go to bed, I'm going to fully let go
and get a full, restful sleep. By the time I awaken tomorrow, I will be more
refreshed and be filled with the enthusiasm and Momentum I need to break this
cycle." I then take a shower and invariably in the shower, I turn my thoughts
into positivity and simplification and toward problem-solving. Do it yourself
and please share your results with me and other readers.

10. Change your Words and Build
Momentum.Your words are enormously powerful. To move forward and
upward, change the tone and direction of your thinking. Replace your current
words. Go from "Problem" to "Opportunity". Go from "Difficulties" to "Benefits".
Small, consistent changes in your words will change "Pessimism" to "Optimism"
and "Inertia" to "Momentum".

Your thinking is
a skill that you can cultivate, fine-tune and master. When you develop Momentum
Mind, you will become more capable of re-energizing yourself and regaining your
balance and Momentum.

About the
Author:

Joel Simms, also known as Dr. Mo, is the
SelfGrowth.com Official Guide to Achievement. Over his forty-year career, he has
done many things. Prior to his 20 years developing the Human MoMentum approach,
he spent 20 years in the Organizational Dynamics and Marketing Consulting
fields. Joel's work experience spans industrial products, retail and health
services.

In 1991, he returned to his first love, psychology,
exploring the relationship between thinking, feeling and behavior and
established an active private consulting practice. His formal training includes
an undergraduate degree in Science (B.Sc.) and graduate degrees in
Organizational Behaviour and Business (MBA) and Psycho-educational Psychology
(Ph.D.).

Joel is married,
the father of three adult children and the proud grandfather of a beautiful
grand-daughter, Lilly.